Northcentral University

The idea is for students to make the most of this new opportunity, and I personally find many benefits have arisen and shall continue to emerge from this type of education. One benefit I consider crucial is the chance for students to remain living in their parents' homes while they attend university-level classes. At 18 years of age, many are not fully mature nor have acquired yet the necessary skills to become fully independent (Hogan & Astone, 1986; Rosemond & Owens, 2018). In some cases, students who do not have prospects in their local universities need to seek educational avenues in other countries. This is, in fact, the case for my niece, who is a citizen of Ecuador. She received a full-ride scholarship to study in Buenos Aires, at one of Argentina's and South America's most prestigious universities (UBA) in the school of medicine. She traveled with her father (my brother) to Argentina in March, right before the pandemic hit those areas. As a result, her studies have begun online (as is the case for most schools worldwide now) and she can now return home with her father to study remotely. Statistics showed how in 2017, approximately 15.4 percent of students in the U.S. were enrolled in exclusively online universities. As of April 2020, 98 percent of universities have transitioned their in- person classes to strictly online; an amazing shift (EducationData.org, 2020). I could additionally share my own experience. Previously, I had the opportunity to attend personal classes at the University of Michigan during the first part of my professional preparation. It was undoubtedly a freeing experience as a result of the always enriching personalized interaction. In recent years, for personal reasons, I made the decision to advance in postgraduate studies by studying online at our University. This stage opened up a surprising new opportunity for me: the possibility of allocating more useful time to conduct additional research for the preparation of my thesis and at the same time, remain in the family environment which, in my case, is a very positive emotional contribution to my family, at the present time. I could additionally state that by saving useful time of physically having to attend and go back and forth to a brick and mortar school, I am benefiting from being able to allocate that time to other relevant objectives which I have proposed myself to achieve. Therefore, I can definitely say it has been a highly positive experience for me, to attend NCU! Read more in an article by Peter Reuell, Harvard Staff Writer 6 The Psychology Bulletin

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